


Airplane Mode

by kittykit



Category: Game Grumps
Genre: 80s music and pretending everything is okay, AU, Angst, Drug Use, Drugs, Eventual Smut, I Don't Even Know, Marijuana, Multi, Recreational Drug Use, References to Drugs, Relationship(s), Slow Burn, Weed, i dont know what im doing, literally idk why i made this other than the fact i like 80s music and it gives me -this- vibe, ninja sex party
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-29
Updated: 2018-12-15
Packaged: 2019-05-15 10:34:53
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,595
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14788890
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kittykit/pseuds/kittykit
Summary: High school is way different from the adult world. Everyone was surprised when you were able to score a spot as a storyboard artist for a popular kids cartoon, and even more so when you were able to convince your higher ups you were worth receiving a pilot for your own show. He wasn't, though.





	1. Mental Health (Bang Your Head)

You never went to school.

While most Juniors and Seniors had their days, everyday was your day. You'd get up just so your parents would think you were at school, show your face to some people so they could vouch (which rarely ever happened, your parents didn't care that much), and then sit in the back parking lot and smoke whatever you could get your hands on.

Sometimes that was kush (indica was your favorite), cigarettes, hell, the usual shit. You knew you'd never go anywhere in life, so you made life simple. You have such a short time on planet earth, why waste it doing pointless things? When were you ever going to use calculus? An MLA format? As long as you made it by... Well, you were happy. That's all that mattered in the end, right?

He would come around once in a while too. Sometimes, he actually went to school, which was already a lot more than you, but often you would find yourself on his bed dazed out of your mind and talking about parallel universes and shit. So when you got a knock on your passenger side window as you lit up a cigarette, you weren't surprised to see the mop of brown curly hair. You simply unlocked your doors and he got in, locking it behind him. 

This was simple protocol of course- Just in case a teacher or something came and saw you smoking. They would knock on the window, scream, try to get in, but you two would just shrug it off and drive away. You could see the figure of someone checking the parking lot, probably making sure the cars there had the parking passes the school sold, so you started up your old girl and drove off. 

"It's been a bit since we got yelled at. Could've been fun." You only shrugged in response, turning onto the main road. 

"Do you wanna grab breakfast?" You already knew the answer as you pulled into the McDonalds drive thru. Of course, you would be paying- He had paid for the last batch of weed, so it was your turn to pay for something. It was a balanced friendship- even if that's all it'll ever be.

After getting your greasy food, you both headed to his house. No one would be home, of course. His mother and father worked, and even though they worried about him, they knew he wouldn't get into serious trouble. They were really sweet people, always being kind to you when you were over.

It seemed they knew this was what you considered the prime of your life.

You both stepped into his home, making a beeline for his room. It was nothing special, but for you two, it held the most memories. It was just a simple place- A teenage boy's room with a desk, a bed, posters, and a small television set in the corner with a console and a VHS player hooked up to it. You dropped your bag, then sprawled out across his floor. While his bed was big enough for you both, you liked laying on the ground. It made you feel grounded, and being completely flat with a hard carpeted surface under you always made you more relaxed.

He shut his door, dropped his bag, and made his way to the corner of his bed closest to the wall. That's where he hid his stash- In the little pocket between the bed and the wall on his bed frame. It was perfect- no one would find it.

He opened the little bag he kept everything in. It was a black CD looking case, but inside held a pipe, multiple baggies and pill bottles filled with weed, lighters, rolling paper, wax, a torch, and a small dab pen. He laid the case flat on the ground, pushing it towards you. he sat criss-cross in front of you as you sat up. 

You picked up the small dab pen and the torch, turning it on and heating up the end. He unscrewed the lid to the small glass jar that held the wax as you handed him the now hot glass. He took it with his thumb and forefinger, bringing it to his lips as he inhaled the smoke from the wax. You stood as he did so, opening his window just a bit, turning on his fan, and lighting a candle on his windowsill. You then returned to sit in front of him, the dab pen back in the CD case as he exhaled a large puff of smoke. You picked it up, lit the torch, and began heating it again for yourself. This repeated until both of you were relatively high. You both decided to take a break as you laid on the floor, your head right by his as you laid opposite and stared at the ceiling. 

"You know," He paused, sighing happily. "I'm content with how things are going. You know? Like, we're teens, we're in high school, we're doing what teens do." You held back a snort as he continued. 

"But- We're seniors. We only have a few months left of this before we graduate- And then what?" You tried not to think about these things, but... He was right. You didn't have much longer together.

"There's no 'we' in this." You murmured, ignoring the fact he turned his head to look at the side of your face. "You're going to college, you're gonna be successful, and I'm probably gonna die doing something stupid before you get out." You heard him intake breath as if he was going to complain, but you continued.

"Dan, you're gonna be so successful. When I met you, I just knew- I  _knew_ I would be lucky to know you. I know you're gonna do amazing things. I wouldn't be surprised if you ruled the world with your stupid smile." You grinned, a small giggle replacing your steady words. He smiled.

"Well, what about you? You're not really gonna die." You stayed silent.

"...You're not gonna die. You... Wouldn't do that to yourself."

"What's the point in being a fuck up past thirty?" You murmured.

Dan sat up, looking down at you with a horrified look. "You're not gonna do anything, right?"

You tried to smile. "Not on purpose."

"But that won't hold you back from putting yourself in life or death situations." He seemed to be catching on.

"Yeah." You murmured. "Life is so short. Why do pointless things? Why not take risks? Why-" You paused. "Think about it this way. Every day is my last day. When you go to college, it's the end of us. Our friendship is over. You'll start associating with cool, smart, people. You'll meet so many girls who are way smarter and more interesting than me. I'll be stuck here, living out a life that's not worth it." He was silent for a long time, then spoke.

"So, these last couple months are our last time together?" He looked up at the ceiling, and you shrugged.

"...Yeah." He sighed, running a hand through his hair. You sat up, scooting so you both sat side by side, knees touching. You placed your hand over his own. He turned to look at you, but you couldn't bring yourself to look him in the eye. He leaned down to your face level and took your chin to make you look at him. He leaned forward and pressed his lips against your own. 

It was special. Such a small thing to make you _feel_ something. Such a small thing, but it made you want to try. It made you want to live long enough to see him succeed, even if it took hundreds of years. Something so small, yet so powerful.

It took that one motion to make you want to do something other than smoke all day.

* * *

You sat slumped at your desk, pencils and markers and paper scattered all around. You wanted to scream, but you knew you couldn't. It was nearly three am. 

You picked up your tablet pen again, continuing to line a section of the animation you were working on. You worked as a storyboard artist at Cartoon Network. You weren't sure how the hell you managed that, but you guessed putting yourself through art school was worth it.

You graduated with a shitty GPA, however, art school doesn't require a GPA- So you went for it. Obviously.

Your boss had found a ton of stupid little drawings in your trashcan, writing scrawled all over the papers for your dumb comic you worked on in your free time. He called you to his office and told you he was going to give you an opportunity- He thought you deserved better than a storyboard office, and told you to get all your things together from that comic by next week. He was going to have you present to the high ups, and hopefully, get you your own show.

That worked. It worked very well. They told you they were going to run a pilot of your show to see if the audience liked it. While you were thrilled, you were't happy with the small team they gave you. You wanted everything to be perfect, and unfortunately, they gave you a lot of less-experienced animators. You ended up going through most of the scenes to re-do them, since voice actors were coming in tomorrow. You held a few auditions, but only one person stood out for the lead role. Her name was Suzy Berhow, and you were more than excited to work with her. She asked if she could bring her husband and his friend to the rolling tomorrow for her youtube channel, and you agreed. It would be good publicity for the show, and make people want to watch it! From what you understood, she had a large following.

Five hours later you walked into your office building with your laptop and tablet under one arm, bag dangling from the other. You rushed in, pressing the elevator button. You needed to get to the recording studio in less than two minutes to oversee your team of actors and make sure everything went smoothly.

With thirty seconds to spare, you dropped all your things beside you and leaned over to the sound master. 

"We good to go?" He only nodded and you gave him the USB that held what they would be speaking to.

It started off fine. You found yourself happier than ever with Suzy's skill. After an hour or so, you gave her a break and she took your hand. 

"I want you to meet my husband! C'mon!" She was such a sweet girl, and you both had hit it off at her audition well. You could see yourself becoming good friends.

She led you into the hall, two men sitting and watching the recording on the screen. They turned to look at you, and you smiled. In your rush you must have dashed past them.

The men were very different from each other. One was larger, had his hair pulled back into a bun with a blonde streak through it. He had a beard and mustache, but overall, he seemed quite friendly. Very much Suzy's type.

The other was tall and lean, brown curly hair touching his shoulders. He wore a simple pair of jeans and a Def Leppard band shirt. He had a watch on his wrist, but nothing fancy. 

"This is Arin Hanson, my husband!" The larger man held out his hand, smiling at you. You took it, exchanged a few words, then turned to look at the other man. Suzy smiled, and you held out your hand to him.

"And this is Danny Sexbang- Arin's best friend." You smiled, and gave her a look. "That's not really your last name, is it?" He shook his head, brown curly mop moving with his movements.

"No, it's Avidan. Dan Avidan."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this first chapter is good! I don't know if I'll continue writing this, but if you want to see more, please let me know! <3
> 
> Thank you for reading the first chapter of Airplane Mode!
> 
> tumblr: nationallydone.tumblr.com


	2. Heaven is a Place on Earth

Over the past year, you watched Dan start making more friends. Better friends. Less drug addicted friends and more smart, influential friends.

You slowly started distancing yourself from him, just so you didn't make it too obvious. It wasn't because you hated him or anything- quite the opposite, actually- but rather because you didn't find yourself good enough. You wanted him to make it in the world, and hanging around with you would just... Drag him down in life.

You didn't think he was noticing. He went to school a lot more his Senior year, and slowly stopped coming around to you all together. You didn't mind, before him, you were alone anyways. You expected this at some point, but for once, you decided to go to school.

You parked your car out in one of the neighborhoods beside the school and walked, since your broke ass couldn't afford a parking pass the school sold. You told yourself if you hated it, you could just leave, but a part of you wanted to make it through the day. You wanted to prove something to yourself, yet you weren't sure what.

You stepped into the school ten minutes late because honestly you could give less of a shit. You were at least there. In your hand was a slurpee from the 7-11 and a pack of sour gummy worms. You opened the door to your first class, sliding your sunglasses up onto your head and heading to your seat.

"Nice of you to join us for once." You ignored the teachers snide remark, slumping down in your seat comfortably and tossing your notebook onto your desk. You told yourself silently you could do it, trying to avoid looking like you could hear the other students whispering about you.

"I heard she OD'd, I didn't know she was actually alive!"

"I heard she was a slut. That every guy had been with her. Maybe no one wanted her today?"

"She must've run out of crack."

You exhaled sharply, a few people immediately shutting their mouths and not saying a word for the rest of class. The only person who didn't take their eyes off you the entire first period was Dan.

After class, you decided you had had enough and wanted to leave. What the hell was the point in this? You did your work, you would even turn it in. You were passing enough to graduate. What was the point in going to class when you could just pic up books from the library? As you began to pull your pack of cigarettes out of your pocket, you felt a hand tug on your forearm. You turned, rolling your eyes at the figure.

"What the hell are you doing?" There was no malice within the tone, but genuine curiosity.

"I'm going to second period," You avoided looking at him, instead lighting up a cigarette right there in the hallway.

"You can't smoke in here, dude! You'll get expelled!" He took the cigarette from your lips as the hallway began to empty, second period starting. He drug you into the bathroom, pulling you into a stall.

"Seriously, what are you doing?" He asked as he tossed your cigarette into the toilet. He ignored your whines as he placed his hands on both of your shoulders, forcing you to look at him.

"I don't know, okay? I thought 'hey, maybe I could do it for once', but I was so fucking wrong dude. I hated every moment of it." Dan rolled his eyes, leaning against the stall wall. 

"Come on." He mumbled, unlocking the stall and dragging you out of the bathroom.

"What are you doing?" You asked, not even mad that he was dragging you to the exit. You were lucky to get outside without being caught.

"I'm taking you to my house. Clearly something is wrong and we're gonna talk about it." You pulled your arm away from him, stopping in your tracks. 

"Uh, no you aren't. You have school. Friends who'll be mad at you for missing lunch with them." You grumbled the last part, his eyes widening. 

Though you knew you had been purposefully distancing yourself from him, you couldn't help but feel somewhat lonely without him. He seemed to realize that as well.

"Is that what this is about?" He asked, giving you one of his famous 'Danny' looks.

"No! No, I'm happy for you!" You insisted, pausing. "You have really good friends! I see you guys around sometimes and it makes me happy you're so happy! I'm like, stoked you're going to school full time now, and I'm glad your friends are so smart and capable-"

"Smart and capable? Are you joking?" He looked somewhat hurt, and you sighed softly. "I didn't mean to leave you out. I didn't mean to stop talking to you, I-I... I guess we just grew apart."

And that was the honest truth. You both had just grown apart. From best friends, potential lovers, to whatever this was. You knew it was best for him, but what was best for you? You wanted to be selfish, tell him you loved him and to never leave you, but you knew he would do it in a heart beat. You knew if you asked, he would run away with you and never look back. You knew-

You paused. You were staring at him for almost a full minute, tears threatening to well up in your eyes. He was looking at you, a concerned look covering his face. He was so easy to read.

You looked at him for a moment longer, then began walking past him. He called after you, telling you that you both needed to talk, and that you both weren't finished, but you couldn't bring yourself to care.

You were  _not_ going to let him become nothing.

You refused to allow him to even call you an aquatance. 

You  _refused_ to be apart of his life.

You'd just ruin it.

* * *

Another day had gone by, and your thoughts had been swimming with what had happened a few days ago.

Not only had you seen Dan again, but you knew what he was doing. He was doing absolutely stellar without you in his life. Which was... Good. As a stupid teenager, you had told him day after day he would do amazing things, and you were right. Here he was, living the best possible life. 

And you had nothing to do with it.

Although you were happy, happier than ever for him, you still felt a soft pang of sadness. You were bummed you had nothing to do with his new life, his accomplishments. You thought about what could have been if you had stayed. Would you both be married? Still best friends? Would you be at his shows backstage cheering and singing along happily to his music?

You shook your head as you erased a few strokes from your tablet. You had to stop thinking about him, you needed to focus on your work. The episode was due to be shown to the higher ups two days from now, and you weren't even done coloring the final stills. What about shading? You knew you didn't need to do all this work, and that you should trust your animators and editors a lot more, but even when you gave them a specific color palette for the characters they still somehow managed to stray completely off of what the characters looked like. They colored a dogs fur  _green_ because they thought since it was in the background no one would notice. 

You were a perfectionist with that sort of thing. No way in hell was anything gonna slip by you.

Your mind began to wander back to the last couple days, and how kind Suzy and her friends were. Dan seemed like such a nice guy now, clean, sober, just an all around genuine guy. You felt your heart pang slightly, shaking your head again. You needed to stop thinking about him. He wasn't thinking about you, and you knew it. Why would he? You're a distant memory.

_"So... You are?" You gave him your first name. He shook your hand happily, and then they all left._

It was such a brief moment with him. It was almost as if it didn't happen. Such a quick "Hi, I'm Dan" and then they were gone. You knew he hadn't recognized you, but who would? 

You no longer had poorly colored hair, shitty old clothing, stolen shoes and makeup. You barely ever wore any back in the day, yet you knew there was a stark difference between the you  _then_ and the you  _now._

You looked at the time on your phone. 4:52 am. You stretched, saving your work and powering down your tablet and desktop before standing and flopping down on your bed. Within a few moments, you were out like a light.

"Fuck!"

Once again, you were running late. You had only gotten about three hours of sleep, and were currently running around your apartment getting all your stuff together, You threw your belongings in your car, pulling your hair into a ponytail and slipping your glasses over your face. You had no time for makeup, or to do anything to make yourself look presentable, so you decided to cover your bags with your glasses and your unbrushed mop of hair with a ponytail.

You slid into the drivers seat of your old car, and turned it on. It took a few moments, but it finally started up. You drove as fast as you could without it being illegal to your studio, parked, and got all your stuff together. You hurriedly made your way to the elevator, not expecting what you saw.

"Hey! I was waiting for you!" You cocked an eyebrow at the tall man before you, pressing the up button.

"I'm really sorry um... Dan was it?" Oh god was that such a blatant lie, you remembered him of course! He knew it, too! "I'm running late, can we pick this up another time?" You stepped into the elevator and he followed you.

"Yeah, actually I was gonna ask you if you wanted to grab lunch. I wanted to catch up." Your eyes widened and you spun your head to look at him. He had a sly grin on his face as he looked over your shocked featured.

"I-I..." You couldn't manage to say anything, just mumbles and jumbled up noises somewhat representing an excuse coming from your lips.

"Caught you." You murmured, crossing his arms. "I know you probably won't want to get into it but... For closure, I guess, I just kinda wanted to know... Y'know. Why you just up and left town after our little chat that day." You looked at your feet, refusing to look him in the eye.

"That can wait until lunch. Can I count on you not to bail?" You thought for a moment, but didn't say anything. "Obviously, I know where you work, and I got your number from Suzy so... I won't hesitate to spam your phone until I get to talk to you!" 

From anyone else that would have been overstepping a major boundary, but for you both, it let a smile slip to your features. That's exactly what he said when you both first met, that he wouldn't hesitate to show up to your house and ring the bell until you answered. It was sweet, since at the time you had zero friends and he was nothing but a charming little shit. 

"Uhg, fine. You can count on me." He smiled, holding the elevator door open as you exited on your floor. He waved after you smiling as you waved back, the door closing and you heading towards your desk.

You supposed one lunch to explain yourself wouldn't be so bad. It was better than him ringing your bell for 30 minutes like he did when you were teens.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi so I don't think I'll be doing the whole 'flashback' kinda thing for every chapter. I think I'm only gonna do it for the first few just so we can get some characteristics and some background established for reader (I call her Marley :)) and Danny. I really hope you enjoy this chapter, and please let me know if you wanna see more. I was literally only inspired to write this chapter because one of you left a comment saying I was talented!!!! It made me wanna cry lol. The support you guys give is actually amazing considering this story only had one chapter!
> 
> Thanks for listening to my dumb monologue, and I hope you enjoyed! <3 
> 
> (Also I know it's kinda a shit chapter but thanks for reading anyways lol)


	3. 9 to 5

"She turned me down."

You were currently sitting in your friend Dan's room, comforting him as he laid sobbing into his pillow on his bed. It was way too early for this shit.

"There there... Pal?" You tried to rub his back comfortingly, but for some reason it came off (to you anyways) awkward. It was an understatement to say you were bad at comforting people. You didn't know how to deal with emotions. You weren't someone who really acted on anything other than impulse. You sort of did whatever you wanted to. You were sad? Time to pull a Jason Dean and hit up 7-11. Angry? Climb a damn mountain and throw shit off of it. Happy? Take a drive and scream your favorite tunes. You thought you handled your emotions pretty well, and considering, you didn't need to bother anyone else with them. It would just be a burden.

Dan, however... Was the exact opposite. Not that he just spewed to anyone who would listen his shit, but to people he trusted? He was always letting them know his feelings about certain things. He wasn't the sort of guy to say things to hurt others, but if he was sad, angry, happy, oh boy would he let you know.

"You suck!" He shouted into his pillow. You removed your hand from his back, rolling your eyes. "I don't know what to say, man! I know it sucks, but you'll get over it? I know that probably doesn't help in the moment, but you gotta think ahead! Instead of going to prom we can just, like, smoke-" He cut you off.

"Why every time anything negative happens you say we should smoke?" By now, he was pissed. Not at you, not at anything but... The sadness had worn off. "What the fuck is wrong with you? Can you do anything  _but_ smoke?"

You glared at him, his stern look not budging even a bit. You knew he was just lashing out because he was hurt, and you knew you used that excuse a lot as well, but you still felt he could have handled it better.

"Well I'm  _sorry,_ what do you want me to say? You were excited for prom, do you want me to take you to a show or something that night? Get fucked up? I don't know what you want from me." He relaxed, looking down at his hands as he flipped over on his back and sat up.

"Lets go to prom." Your eyes widened. No way in hell were  _you_ going to prom. That required a dress, uncomfortable shoes,  _dancing-_

"Hell no. Not happening. I don't do school functions. It's for losers and sex." There was absolutely no way in hell you were going to be caught dead at prom. Dan groaned, grabbing your hand.

"C'mon! It'll be fun. We  _are_ losers. And hey- What if it's fun? What if you enjoy it?" You were about to protest, but he continued. "We can go as friends! We can make fun of everyone. I'll buy you Taco Bell." You turned to look at him, and felt your heart drop. His tear stained cheeks weren't the only thing making you think twice. No, his puppy eyes  _mixed_ with his tear stained face did. After a few moments of his staring, you sighed.

"Fine. I'll go." You relented. Dan's grin was so wide, that smile that was rare because it was so  _large_ and so  _real._ Like when you look at the person you love the most, or a genuine laugh that makes you laugh so hard you can't breathe.

God, what you would do to see that stupid grin.

Dan wrapped his arms around you tightly, you both falling backwards onto his soft mattress. He thanked you over and over again, and while you laughed and pretended you hated it, you could feel your heart swell.

You knew this was the beginning of something  _bigger_ than you  _and_ him.

Sucks it would lead to you skipping town before graduation.

* * *

You stirred your drink with your straw awkwardly as Dan looked back at you, his hands clasped over the table.

"I'm sorry." You stopped your stirring and looked up at him. He had a genuine look of guilt over his features, his mouth cocked down into a small frown.

"What for?" You asked, trying to settle your beating heart. You were nervous, yes, but looking at him now? He's so  _tall,_ so  _fit,_ his jaw and cheekbones are chiseled to perfection. He had to be a heart throb for teens everywhere.

He sighed, looking out the window to his right. He seemed to be thinking how to phrase his next words, which made you somewhat anxious.

"For everything. It probably seemed like I led you on, right?" You cocked your eyebrow, and after a moment, chuckled. He looked back to you, a confused look over his damn near perfect features.

"Leading me on? What are you even on about? You didn't lead me on. We were friends, weren't we?" You paused, two and two clicking together.

"Oh my god, you thought I had a crush on you?" A blush began to rise to his cheeks, and you realized he wasn't talking about  _you._

"No fucking way. You had a thing for me?" You fought the urge to giggle, scream happily, squeal, anything. You were so happy that he thought that when you were teens, because oh  _god_ did you think that. You were somewhat glad he never knew.

"Wouldn't that have been me leading you on? Like, we-" You paused, rethinking your words. "We hung out all the time, I was always comforting you, so..."

"But I kissed you all the time!" He blurted, a hurt expression settling onto his face. "You can't tell me you didn't feel the same. Didn't you?" Now it was your turn to blush.

"I-I..." You trailed off. You didn't want to answer this question. You pulled a few bills from your bag and placed them on the table. "I really have to get back to work!" You stood, hurriedly grabbing your things. He stood as well, walking with you to the door after he also placed a few bills on the table.

"H-Hey! Look, wait!" He grabbed your arm, making you pause outside the restaurant. "Whether you felt the same or not, I'm still really sorry. I'm sorry nothing ever came of us. I gotta admit, I cherished the time we spent together and I regret never making us more than just... Whatever we were."

You only shrugged, his hand dropping from your arm.

"It's fine, really. This is decades old, just... Drop it. What do you expect to happen? Us fall in love and get married? It's just a stupid high school crush." Yikes, you knew it was harsh. You could imagine the hurt look he had on his face. You didn't dare turn around. Instead, you slipped into your car, turning the engine on, and driving off. You didn't  _dare_ look back, knowing that your stupid teenage crush would get the better of you. It would make you turn around, hug him as tightly as you could, and profess your undying love for him. It was stupid, but teenage you had always wanted to be with him. You knew you would give in.

So you didn't turn around.

And you didn't hug him.

And you didn't tell him how you felt when you were teens.

Instead, you went back to work on your show. It was the only thing that mattered, after all.

 

"Okay, first of all, Karma and Lucy are in the wrong places. They need to be switched," You paused, pushing your glasses back up your nose as you watched one of your animators change the positions. You moved on to another station, where a girl was coloring the most important part of the pilot.

"Hey hey, hold on. What happened to the color palette? This is a really intense scene, if it's this dark it'll scare kids. Keep in mind, this is a show on a kids channel. While lots of teens and adults will be watching, we still have an audience. Think of Steven Universe or Adventure time, right? Dark themes with less dark surroundings. It'll make things easier to digest for the viewer." The girl only nodded, switching back to the color palette you had given her to work with. You continued onto the script station, where they were currently making revisions for the character of Karma. While Lucy, Suzy's character had been completely done with recording, Karma's voice actor was going to be in the studio that evening recording these lines.

"Don't make such big revisions. We don't have time to change entire sentences around, Suzy already recorded and I can't go back and animate the correct syllables and vowels this time. I don't have time. We've been over these lines three times, just look at spelling and punctuality mistakes." The boy sighed, but erased a few things.

God was your team inexperienced, but nonetheless, you were so happy to have them. They were all talented in their own ways, and with a bit more time they'd get the hang of it. As you were looking at one of the stills for promotion one of the young girls was showing you for you to edit, you felt a tap on your shoulder. 

"Um, I'm really sorry to interrupt, but there's a man here to see you." You groaned. It was probably your boss, or a delivery or something. You apologized to the girl you were talking to and excused yourself. The other girl who had tapped you guided you over to your office. You stepped in and immediately groaned.

"Are you fucking serious? You can't keep bugging me during work. I have a deadline I have to meet, and I don't even have the theme song animated yet." Dan only smiled, standing.

"I know, I know but you ran off before we were finished talking." You groaned.

"Seriously, I don't have time for this. Please, leave." He held his hands up in defense, rolling his eyes.

"I'm not here for that! Arin wanted to deliver something to you from Suzy, but I offered to drop it off instead." He pulled a small box from his bag and placed it onto the table with a letter.

"Thanks, now please  _go,_ I have to go back over the script!" You shooed him off as he laughed, shutting your office door behind him. You lumped down into your desk chair, placing your hands over your face. You supposed you could take a short break, just to read the letter and open the small box. You sat up, grasping the box in your hands. You carefully undid the red bow, pulling the top of the black cardboard off the box. You gasped as you looked over the gift.

Inside was a necklace- But not just any necklace. It was gorgeous, and looked to be  _extremely_ expensive. You hurriedly opened the envelope that held the short letter.

_Hey!_

_I just wanted to thank you for choosing me to play the character of Lucy! I'm really excited to be apart of this amazing show with these amazing people. I have a shop I run online where I sell jewlery, and I wanted to give you one of my most popular items as a thank you!_

_I hope we can continue to work together, and I can't wait to see where this will end up. Let's catch lunch sometime!_

_-Suzy_

_P.S, Dan won't stop talking about you! It's crazy you both knew each other in high school. He was telling me how big of a crush he had on you, LOL. I think you both should hang out together and reconnect. It would be cool to have double dates... ;)_

You rolled your eyes as the end of the letter, but didn't feel any less grateful. Suzy had taken the time to not only write a letter, but to even  _think_ of you! You were honestly so touched, considering she had just given you of all people something so gorgeous.

You had to remember to thank her.

And also explain to her how you and Dan were nothing more but friends in high school.

...And also tell her how much more fit he's gotten since then.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiiii two updates in a row!  
> This chapter was actually going to be much much longer, but by the time I began adding more in the middle I realized how it would not be easier for me but for you guys to read if it was split into chapter four. Bummer, I know, but that means a quick update this time too!  
> I really hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and a little insight into the show.... ;)  
> Thank you for the support, and I'm really happy you guys are sticking along.


	4. Anyone Else But You

"You're gorgeous."

You let your head rest against the chest of the random man you found yourself with. Dangerous? Yes. Was anything going to stop you? 

No.

You found yourself in a slump lately, sitting and doing absolutely nothing. You were all out of tears, you were all out of love to give. Each time you gave someone a little bit of you, they always left.

It was different with him though. You left instead. You didn't even stick around for a second after you felt things were over. It was your own fault, really. After a few months, you were still the same. You had yourself a fake ID, going from bar to bar in the small shitty town you found yourself in. You went from bed to bed, hangover from hangover, person to person. Is this really where you would end up? Living off of people you don't know, traveling and hating yourself for leaving. 

You pushed yourself from the arms of the stranger, sitting down at the bar. You told him you had a headache, to which he called you a bitch, but you didn't care. He left the small bar as you ordered another drink, taking a small sip while staring at the bottles lined neatly on the shelves in front of you. You didn't even acknowledge the presence of someone sliding into the stool beside you.

The sound of trashy country music was soon drowned out by the chatter and the switch to older slow songs. It was weird hearing them again, after having listened to them with Dan almost all the time. You let your head drop, opting to stare at the old wooden bar instead of the many bottles that led you here. You soon heard a few hollers as some younger people strolled into the bar, a few girls shouting their names.

"Danny! Nick! Hey!" You didn't bother looking up. You knew you were getting freaked out, but it was just a name- A common, simple name. You brought your glass to your lips and downed it, wiping your lips with your sleeve. You began to stand, before you heard a voice.

"So, you ended up here?"

You froze, hands gripping the bar for support. You felt as if you would collapse if you didn't. Hearing that all too familiar voice, the one that drove you to be this way-

No. He didn't drive you to act like this. You did. You did this to yourself.

"I don't know what you expected," You finally responded not moving a muscle. You swore it was a dream. after a few moments, he spoke again.

"I guess I expected more out of you." It stung, but he was right. You were worth more than sleeping around and the mop of greasy hair on your head. You turned, eyes gleaming in the light. You noticed he looked much more masculine. His strong jawline seemed to only get sharper, and his hair framed his face in such a way he looked like a Ken doll. His eyes had so much emotion, and you felt you could get lost in them for days. HIs hands were stuck into his jean pockets, and the hurt look on his face didn't suit him, but you wished you could just hug him. 

It would be wrong, though. After what you did? You knew he had always looked like this, but it had been so long, you had forgotten how attractive he was. How much you genuinely cared for him. He reached around you and placed a twenty onto the bar beside your empty glass. He nodded his head toward the door and then spoke.

"Let's get out of here."

You sat awkwardly in his car, one he must have gotten more recently.

You couldn't help but wonder if he had missed you at all. If he got over your disappearance quickly or had let it sit with him for this long. Were your parents looking? Probably not. Did he think you had died? Did he even  _care?_

"What have you been doing?" You had managed to get lost in your own thoughts, the hum of his car leading you further and further away. Thank god he said something.

"Stuff." You simply answered. He knew there was more to it, but didn't say anything. He just kept driving.

It felt forever until the car had stopped. He turned to get out of his car, but paused. He looked to you, eyes dull and tired. He then turned back, closing his door after he got out. You followed, looking at the building in front of you. 

It wasn't exactly an amazing building, kind of shoddy, but it fit him perfectly. It wasn't messy or disgusting, and when you stepped up the stairs toward one of the apartments, you knew it was a lot better than the outside looked.

He was lucky to find a place like this so close to his campus.

He quickly unlocked the apartment door, and you ignored the figure of a passed out man on the couch. He stepped into a room, tossing his keys onto the bed. You guessed the man was his roommate, since he didn't say anything. He searched through a drawer, then tossed a large shirt towards you. You knew what this meant; he wanted you to stay. And at this point, you were welcoming it. You were tired, beat, all you wanted was to curl up in his arms, cry, and tell him you loved him.

After a moment of staring at the shirt in your hands, he spoke. You looked up to see him staring at his dresser, hands gripping the edge.

"I was in love with you." He stated, not turning to look at you.

"M-Me too." You murmured, gripping the shirt in your hands. Of course, it was an old Rush shirt. He didn't say anything more, tossing himself onto the bed. You stripped from your torn jeans and beat up shirt, slipping into his large one. You didn't have anything else, but it didn't matter. He had seen you naked plenty of times, and besides... You were still in your panties.

You slowly slid onto the bed beside him, and realized he was passed out. You smiled at him, moving the hair from his face. You kissed his forehead and fell asleep beside him.

For the first time in over a year, you felt as if you belonged.

In the morning, you woke before he did. You felt bad as you wrote a little note. You felt even worse stealing his shirt as you left yours behind.

* * *

You strummed a few chords with your ukulele and looked back to your friend. You were currently in the sound booth, recording some demos of the theme song. You had used a placeholder for the pilot, which was successful! You were finally greenlit for six more episodes, and you were determined to get an  _actual_ theme song in place. 

"I think it could just be you and me against the world, Lucy." Your partner played a few chords on the piano, keeping in time with the singer.

"Well, Karma my dear, this is upsetting. I need others to feel alive," She continued. You looked up from your hands to see the soundmaster had muted himself and was talking to... Of course, Dan. 

He had been coming by during his lunch breaks to see you, and to help out as much as he could. No one really minded, considering he just tagged along with Suzy who also came by just to see how things were looking. She was an amazing help and did much more than she needed to as a voice actress.

You continued strumming, ignoring the two speaking. You looked to your friend who was still playing his part on the piano. You gave him a look and he nodded.

"With so much happening, I need to see the other side. I need you to be okay with that." She continued on.

Soon enough, the song was finished and the soundmaster was back at his space, Dan shadowing him. 

"That sounded great! Go ahead and take a lunch break," He paused, shooting a glance at Dan, "And we'll meet back up in an hour." You placed your ukulele down on a stand, following everyone out of the small recording space. Dan stood there grinning as you exited.

"That sounded awesome. You're gonna do so well!" You rolled your eyes and nodded.

"Yeah yeah, whatever. You down for some lunch?"

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> can you tell my aesthetic by how i describe settings? i hope so!!! if you haven't caught on, the titles of each chapter are hits from the 80s- with one exception, being this chapter. This song is instead from 2001 (lol), but since Dan would have still been in school around this time, i thought it would be alright to include. Also!! I'm sorry there wasn't more about the present!! I got a little carried away haha,,
> 
> hey, you wanna ask some questions about this story? you wanna see EXTRAS of this story? go ahead and check out my tumblr.
> 
> nationallydone.tumblr.com <3
> 
> thanks again for your support, and I'll continue updating as much as I can!


	5. Cool It Now

You bobbed your head along to the lyrics passing absently through your tiny ears.

You were only eight, and the song you were listening to was a few years old by now, but it had to be one of your favorites.

As a kid, you were into poppy jams and liked dancing around your room. You loved strutting down the street in your overalls and big jacket. You had just gotten a new pair of velcro high tops from the mall when your mother finally noticed the holes in your old ones, and you were excited to go to the neighborhood playground and show them off to all the other kids.

You didn't usually go to the playground. You usually just walked around town and hung out with this one stray dog that hid down by a hiking trail. The other kids would make fun of you, saying you dressed like a boy and that your mom was a druggie. Your family members were never home, and you didn't think your mom was a druggie. She just was never home. And that's all there was to it.

You hopped down the sidewalk, still bobbing your head to the jams in your dad's old walkman. He never used it, so when you took it he didn't notice it missing. Or you, half the time. All the money you managed to get your hands on went to new tapes to play in it. You finally paused right outside the fenced in playground, a few older kids running around and a mother swinging her younger kid in the baby swing. You hopped off the concrete and onto the wood chips, pausing your walkman and stuffing the small headphones into your overall pockets. You skipped happily up the jungle gym and to the slide, standing in front of a boy two years older than you.

"Hey, Randy!" You stood on your heels as he turned his head from his other friend towards you.

"Oh, hey." He mumbled, his friend giggling behind him. 

"Can I play?" You asked, smiling up at him. You had a large gap between your two front teeth, and your bottom teeth were just growing in. His friend giggled again, then spoke.

"We don't play with  _babies,"_ He stated. You crossed your arms, your adorably large jacket making you look smaller. 

"I'm not a baby," You pouted. "I'm eight." He only laughed again and went down the tube slide. Randy ignored you and followed him down. You watched as Randy and the three other older boys all got on their bikes and rode off. You were currently left pouting at the top of the jungle gym, watching the young mother swing her toddler on the swing.

Why didn't anyone want to play with you?

No one at school would play with you, no one at the park would play with you, and no matter what you did, you were  _ignored._ It wasn't fair.

You stepped onto one of the ladders and slid down gently. The mother and toddler began to pack up, so you went and sat on one of the swings. They eventually left, and you were sitting all alone.

You kicked your feet at the wood chips, not enough to get you swinging, but enough to move you a bit. As the sun began to set a little, you heard the familiar crunch of wood chips. You looked up to see a boy about your age with curly hair standing in front of you.

"I like your shoes." He said, hands stuck in his pockets. He wore a red t-shirt tucked into nice levi jeans with white lace up shoes. His hair was wavy and full, his brown eyes matching.

"Thanks." You grumbled, looking back down at your feet. He sat beside you on the other swing, using the tips of his shoes to move him slightly.

"I'm Danny." He stated as if it was obvious. You glanced over to see him smiling brightly at you, the bright sunset gleaming off his hair. He was also missing his two bottom teeth. You didn't say anything, looking back at your feet.

"I've seen you at school! We're in the same grade." He looked up to the sky, and you took the opportunity to look at him a bit better. You did sort of recognize him. 

"You're one of the boys that plays soccer on the field during recess." You murmured, letting your gaze rest on his face. He nodded happily.

"Yeah! You're the girl whos always alone." You winced. He didn't mean it to sound so rude, but it still stung. He seemed to realize what he said, but instead of saying anything he just gave you a worried look.

"Yeah, that's me." You murmured, looking back to your feet.

"I didn't mean to upset you," He replied. "It's just weird that you're always alone! I hear the other kids make fun of you, but I think you're so cool!" You jolted your head up to look at him. There was no hint of sarcasm, just a smiley boy with brown hair. He seemed genuine enough.

"R-Really?" You asked after a moment. You felt tears well up in your eyes. No one had ever said something so nice to you. Your mother was always busy, your father never around, they barely noticed you at all. And then there were the kids at school- They made fun of you and the way you dressed. He looked absolutely horrified as tears began rolling down your face. He sat shocked as you sniffed.

"U-Um! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to-" You shook your head, your balled fists trying to wipe away your childish tears. 

"N-No! It was nice!" You wailed. He then just sat confused. After a moment, he stood. 

"You should, um, come to my house for dinner." He stated matter of factly. It didn't seem like you had much choice. Your crying began to lessen. You sniffed, wiping your arm on your large jacket.

"I-Is it really okay?" You didn't understand why this boy wanted you to come over. Maybe someone actually wanted to play with you for once?

He didn't respond, instead he grabbed you by the wrist and pulled you gently in the direction of his home.

And for once, you felt like you had a friend.

* * *

You sat in your car listening to the oldies station. You usually listened to spotify, but today you were feeling like some completely randomized oldies hits. 

You were currently on your way home. It was late, maybe about 8 o'clock. It was weird, you didn't intend to be so late coming home, especially since it was a saturday night. You had found yourself stuck in major traffic (classic LA). 

By the time you got home, you didn't even have a few minutes to change and make sure your house looked nice. You had invited Suzy, Arin, and Dan over, but they insisted on bringing some other friends as well. You said it was alright, mostly because you just wanted to see how Dan acted in front of all of his friends.

Was he the same as he used to be? You obviously didn't know, but he seemed so kind. Like he hadn't changed a bit.

His humor was still there, and even though you both were starting to get closer- due to the three months since you both had reconnected and the daily lunches- you weren't sure if he was just being nice or if he genuinely wanted to be around you. Then again, if he didn't, why did he always ask you to lunch? It started with asking, but recently it was just a given. He'd be at your office at around one, and you both would be off to get whatever you both were in the mood for. Even your co-workers began asking if there was something more to your relationship, and you began questioning yourself. No way! Dan was famous now; He was playing sold out shows, he had millions of fans, and ehre you were...

A lonely, dramatic animator.

As you let yourself into your apartment, you clicked on a light.

"Alexa, play Cool It Now by New Edition." 

You heard the robot turn on and immediately the familiar 80s tune began to play through the house.

Suzy had texted you about an hour ago telling you they were on their way. You told her she could let everyone in, but no one was here- You took advantage of that, tidying up around your living room and folding a blanket over the top of your sofa. You cleaned off the coffee table as the chorus began to play.

You couldn't help but move around to the beat of the music as you tidied up a little. You moved your hips and bobbed your head to the rhythm, grabbing the remote to the television. You began to blurt the lyrics.

"You've got to cool it now!" You felt like a kid again, listening to your old favorite music. This song got you to and from school so many times as a kid, and made you believe in love. It was just such a cute song, so as a kid you really hoped you could find a boy just like the song described.

"You've got to slow it down!" You continued to sing at the top of your lungs, feeling your hair move along with your head. You felt like this was the first time in years you had actually let go and let yourself be... Well, you.

You continued singing, not even noticing the front door open and Dan watching you rap along to the beat.

He watched you with a childish glint in his eyes, a genuine smile across his face. He thought it was sweet, this was the you he remembered. Not the depressed, lonely teen you  _were_. By the time the song started slowing down he was clapping, cheering for you. You immediately stopped, throwing your remote onto the couch. 

"Alexa, off!" You shouted, a red blush creeping unto your cheeks. Dan stopped clapping and hollering, entering your apartment fully. 

"That was quite a show you put on!" He giggled, nudging your shoulder. You slipped your hands through your hair awkwardly, avoiding eye contact.

"You didn't see anything." You simply murmured. He only shrugged.

"I thought it was cute," He stated, crossing his arms. 

He really wasn't much different than he used to be. He'd just grown into his features a lot more, like Brad Pitt or someone. His strong jawline could cut glass, his hair so fluffy and large all you wanted to do was braid it- or straighten it? Oh my god how fun would that be? You had to ask him if you could later.

"Where is everyone?" You finally managed, looking over him with a weird look. 

"Suzy and Arin went to get takeout for everyone, and the others are still at the office. Something happened with some footage." He waved his hand like it was no big deal, but you could tell it was. What if they lost all of it and had to re-record? Sure, it may just be playing video games, but they have a lot more they do as well. It had to be tiring. He plopped down onto your sofa as you awkwardly twiddle your thumbs.

"C-Can I get you something to drink?" You weren't used to having guests over, but this was... Nice. When was the last time you entertained?

"I'm alright, thanks." He patted the seat beside him, and you instinctively sat down beside him.

Your couch wasn't very big, but it was big enough for the both of you. You scooted further away from him, trying to put space between the awkward aura. He noticed quickly, rolling his eyes. He slid up beside you, resting his arm on the sofa cushion behind you. Neither of you said anything for a while, sitting in a comfortable silence.

"I'm glad I found you again." It was barely a whisper, but Dan definitely heard it. Now, you couldn't deny the blush on your face. You avoided his bewildered eyes scanning over every feature of your face. You didn't look up from your hands in your lap.

Dan scooted a bit closer, face inches from your own. You refused to turn to look at him.

"Yeah?" He whispered. It was as if he spoke louder, reality would shatter. As if this was a dream he wasn't willing to let go yet. Like you were a scared bunny tangled in plastic and he was only trying to help. You nodded, finally looking at him. Wow, he was much closer than you had initially thought. Your eyes went over his features, now close up quickly. Your eyes darted from his eyes to his lips to his nose to his chiseled cheeks to his lips again- Wow did he have nice lips- To his eyes and his lips and his eyes and his lips and-

You hadn't even realized you were leaning in until your lips brushed his own. You felt your own panic in your chest. You had to pull back. You couldn't do this again. You could absolutely  _not_ kiss him. If you did, you were afraid you'd run. What if he had someone he was interested in? What if he just got out of a relationship? What if you were a rebound?

What if he was using you?

In a moment, all worry left. He pressed his lips to yours, you grabbing his shirt tightly as his hand rested on your knee. It was different than the kisses you had shared as teens, different than the kisses you shared with men at bars, different than drunken kisses at parties. This was  _Dan,_ a full grown man, one with a career, an amazing voice.  _Dan,_ a famous rockstar, a man who could sway millions with the snap of his fingers,  _Dan._ Your teenage romance, your stupid crush, your best friend.

_Your best friend._

When he pulled back, his eyes were half lidded, barely gazing at you. His hand reached up to gently caress your cheek. It floated there softly, and you closed your eyes. You snuggled into his large palm, placing your hands over his resting on your cheek. He began leaning in again, as did you.

"Hey guys!" Shouted a loud voice. Arin, Suzy, and some other men had come in. You and Dan immediately parted, and no one seemed to notice.

"We got chinese!" Suzy chimed happily, holding up two large brown bags.

"We also brought Matt!" Arin added, pointing his thumb to a tall, skinny younger male. His hands were stuffed in his pockets, but he smiled at you anyways.

"And Ryan," A larger young male stepped out from behind the group rolling his eyes. He had a full beard and longer hair. He reminded you of a hamster.

Matt was taller than Ryan, but not by a whole lot. He had a sharp jawline similar to Dan's, and he was just as lanky as him. 

Two peas in a pod.

"Uh, I also brought stuff?" Matt seemed unsure as he held up a large bag. He took out some- wow, okay, some was an understatement- bottles. Obviously alcohol, and a few video games. 

You could definitely get down with this.

"Let's party like teenagers!" Ryan joked, sitting on the chair beside the couch. You stood awkwardly, guiding everyone inside.

These nerves were gonna get worked off with loads, and  _loads_ of booze.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> heyyyyyy! I hope this chapter is okay..... Also, I hope you guys liked the little surprise ;))))
> 
> Please follow me on tumblr (nationallydone.tumblr.com) for updates on this story (and extras!!)
> 
> Thank you for the support! <3


	6. The Kids Aren't Alright

You stood at the front of your eighth grade english class, papers clenched in your hands. Everyone looked so bored, which was usual. Kids scratching carvings into their desks, others holding books under their desks, and even some kids picking at their faces, nails, whatever. It was truly a grotesque scene, and you just hoped you would remember to never look up at everyone in front of you.

You looked down at your paper for a brief moment, then looked back up. You made eye contact with your friend Dan, him only smiling and giving you a thumbs up. You hated writing papers, and hated presenting them even more, but Dan seemed to calm your nerves. You took a deep breath and began reading your poetry assignment.

It was short, and you knew no one but Dan was paying attention, but it still shook you up. You were terrified of people judging you, since your only friend was literally Dan. Even his friends found you weird. There were points where Dan would even pretend not to know you, or ignore you, and even though it hurt... You understood. Who would want to be known as the weird girls only friend? What boy would want to be asked if he was dating the girl who couldn't afford makeup?

When you were asked to, you sat down. Your teacher called the next person up, and you sighed. A note was tossed onto your desk by the kid beside you and you hesitantly opened it.

Do you wanna come over today? We're having chicken and rice

You smiled, scribbling a 'yes' down onto the small scrap of paper. You tossed it back, mouthing 'Dan' to your desk neighbor. They rolled their eyes and did as told.

By the time school had ended, you stood by his locker. You watched him laughing and giggling with his own friends and you felt sort of bad. Wouldn't he much rather have those friends over? They had video games, they had such cool stuff, their parents cared more than yours did. As he chatted with his friends, you turned and began walking towards the front doors of the school. You felt bad. His parents were such good people, they were probably just telling him to be nice to you.

Who would hang out with the plain girl, anyways?

"Hey! Where ya going?" He had the usual smile on his face as he caught up to you, matching your speed. You smiled at him, deciding not to tell him what you were actually doing.

"I didn't wanna bother you guys." You simply stated, ignoring the confusion over Dan's face. He didn't say anything. 

By the time you were halfway to his house, you stopped. He did too, giving you a curious glance.

"Um, I got lots of homework. I should probably head home." Dan cocked an eyebrow. 

"You don't ever do homework." He said, stuffing his hands in his jean pockets. You sat back on your heels, avoiding eye contact.

"Yeah, but I'm failing science so... I should probably do it," He blinked, a frown slowly settling onto his face. He grabbed your wrist and began pulling you towards his home. You knew you weren't getting out of this, so you just let it happen.

He pushed open his front door, calling out to his mom. You both walked into the kitchen where she was washing a few dishes. She turned and smiled at you both, wiping her hands on a kitchen towel.

"Hey, kiddos! How was school?" Dan shrugged, looking to you. They both looked at you, waiting for you to say something.

"It was okay," You murmured, looking at your feet. She didn't say anything and neither did Dan, so she turned and went back to loading the dishwasher.

"Why don't you guys go do something? I'm sure you have homework, right, Danny?" She glanced over her shoulder at you both, and he groaned.

"Fine, we'll go do homework. C'mon." He whined, a smile over his mom's lips. You followed him to his room, where you both usually sat and talked. He tossed his bag on the floor, plopping down beside it. You closed the door behind you like always, sitting in front of him. His parents knew you too well, they didn't mind with you closing the door. You don't think they ever considered you someone Dan would ever look at in a romantic way; And you were positive they were right.

Dan crossed his legs, pulling his math notebook out of his bag. He unzipped the smaller zipper, taking a pencil and flipping to a new page. He glanced at you, cocking his eyebrow as you took out your own notebook.

"You're actually gonna do homework?" He asked. You shrugged as he tossed his textbook open to a random page. He then flipped through a bit, going to the correct page.

He began working. You pretended to be working, only finding yourself bored. You doodled all over the page. Neither of you said anything for a while, sitting in a comfortable silence. The graphite of each of your pencils made a low scratching sound as you both scribbled on your notebooks. Dan glanced up at you, sighed heavily.

"Wanna ditch this and just play some Mario?" You shrugged, closing your notebook and pushing it to the side. He did the same, flicking on his older TV. You winced as the TV made the weird static noise as it turned on, the subtle pop as it came to life. 

You always hated the staticy pop of the TV as it turned on. It was like nails on a chalkboard, or styrofoam rubbing together. It was the absolute worst, and Dan always joked about it. Dan tossed you the Super Nintendo controller as the bright colors of Super Mario World lit up the screen. You pressed the A button on the two-player mode, tossing the controller to the side as he fixed the TV brightness. He had lost the remote ages ago, so he had to manually do it on the TV's sticky buttons.

He finally turned it up, sitting beside you on his bedroom floor. He knew you prefered to be Luigi, so he went first. You watched as he hopped through level one easily, exiting the level and starting 1-2. You sat back, leaning against the base of his bed as he missed a platform, leading Mario to his first death. Dan then handed you the controller, mumbling about how bull that death was. You only rolled your eyes at him playfully, going through the first level and getting yourself a Yoshi.

"I think Yoshi's my favorite Mario character." You stated, finishing up the level and heading to the next.

"Why's that?" You paused, thinking for a moment.

"Well, he's pretty cute. I've always liked dinosaurs. Plus, none of the other characters are appealing to me. He was the first one I chose in Super Mario Kart." Dan nodded, watching as you made it easily through the second level. 

"You don't like Peach?" You snorted, tossing him the controller as you lost.

"Nah, I'm not about how she's made to seem stupid. Like, how does she keep getting kidnapped? Why can't she save herself? She shouldn't always rely on Mario to help her."

"Yeah, but she's a badass. She rules a kingdom and risks her life every day for her people- er, her toads. For how peaceful her kingdom is, I bet she makes some really hard political decisions."

"Yeah, but why does she only allow toads? What about the goombas? Why are they enemies? I think she's probably racist. I mean, only the white toads are allowed in her kingdom. Have you ever seen a black toad? Or are those goombas? Why does she hate the goombas? Honestly, if I was banished from a rad looking kingdom I'd be pretty pissed too. Maybe Bowser's just trying to settle some score for her racism." Dan started laughing, setting the controller down.

"Are you trying to tell me Princess Toadstool is racist?"

"It makes sense." He paused for a moment.

"You're not wrong, but... It's a video game."

"You're the one who asked me why I didn't like her! I gave you my answer!" You protested as he continued laughing.

You both continued playing until Dan's mom yelled to you both for dinner. As you stood, you heard Dan mumble something.

"I think Yoshi's my favorite too."

You bit your lip, watching Ryan pour some drinks. He handed you a glass and you smiled, thanking him.

"What games your got?" Arin asked over his shoulder as he looked through your consoles. 

"Oh! Um, on the bookshelf right there I have them all lined up." He looked to a bookshelf which had loads of books (mostly shoujo and horror themed), then glanced to the other. e stepped towards it, going through all the games before pulling a few out and setting them down.

"Alright ladies, take your pick." He had chosen a few Mario Party titles, some Mario titles, some Mario Kart titles, both of your Jackbox games, and some one-off multiplayer games like WarioWare and smash.

"I'm down to play some Mario Party!" Suzy smiled. Everyone else agreed, Arin making the final choice on the newer title, Super Mario Party for switch. You had played through it a bit on your own while traveling, but never as a group. Needless to say, it didn't have many mini-games unlocked. You all decided to play on teams of two, leaving the fourth slot for the computer.

Of course, Suzy and Arin were on a team, and Matt and Ryan, which left... You and Dan. As Arin loaded up your game, you found yourself shooting back the rest of your drink like it was water. Dan eyed you, pretending to ignore you pouring yourself another drink within the first fifteen minutes of everyone being there.

"Matt, who should we pick?" Ryan asked. Matt and Ryan ended up bickering between if they should steal Peach from Suzy and Arin or if they should go Rosalina for how OP she was. Arin and Suzy won Peach, leaving them to have Rosalina.

"Who should we play?" Dan murmrued to you as they joked around about Arin hacking the game to take Peach from Matt.

"Yoshi, obviously." You replied. Dan smiled, choosing and then handing you the controller.

"Everybody shut up we gotta yeah!" Arin shouted. You, Arin and Matt all high fived in game, then chose a map. You all agreed on with Pirate Dream, letting the battle begin. 

As everyone played and joked around switching off for rolling and minigames, you found yourself more distant from the conversation. Everyone was laughing and talking, but you were stuck in your own head. Everyone here had known each other for so long, you felt like a third wheel. Well, sixth-wheel in your case.

You had gone through three drinks by the time the game was ten minutes in. It was Dan's turn for a minigame, so you excused yourself and stood in your kitchen. You hopped up on your counter, eyeing the vodka you had sitting out on display. While the boys had brought cheap beer, you weren't sure that would hold you over. You knew you were being awkward, distant, probably giving off weird vibes. You needed to loosen up.

You cracked open the seal, grabbing yourself a mug. You poured a little in, shooting it back and then pouring yourself one more. You shot that back as well, already feeling the effects. You slid the bottle back to it's former place, setting the mug into the sink. You tilted your head to each side, popping your neck before you headed back into the living room with everyone else. They were all still laughing and talking.

You sat back down, Dan eyeing you oddly. He didn't say anything but you guessed he knew what you had been doing.

You could thank the many times he saw you drunk and crying as a teen. You could also thank those times for your alcohol tolerance now as well.

At some point, you all had played many games and it ended up being about one in the morning. Arin and Suzy had left about an hour ago, Matt and Ryan leaving about fifteen minutes later. You and Dan sat awkwardly on the couch, the intro to mario party playing over and over on the screen as you both ignored it. You wanted to say something, anything, but you didn't know what. You're grateful when he finally breaks the silence.

"I should probably go." Your heart began to swell. You didn't want him to go, but you knew you couldn't ask him to stay. It'd be weird.

It's just been too long. There's no way you both could settle back into that weird teenage fling you had so long ago.

"Y-Yeah," You say after a moment, standing and pressing the off button on your remote. The screen goes black. You can see your reflection in the glass. You look tired, but Dan even more so. He finally stood after a moment, staring at you in the reflection of the TV.

He's trying to say something. The way his eyes are shining you can tell he's trying to find the best words. You beat him to it.

"Don't go," You murmur without thinking. You felt like a child, your previous 17 year old self. Usually when you were teens, he would be the one with watery eyes begging you to stay with him until everything was okay. But instead, you felt your heart sink as he looked at you now. You knew you needed him. Just for a while.

Dan blinked. You could tell he was surprised, yet he knew he was going to be selfish. He shouldn't stay with you. He would only end up hurting you in the long run. If something like this lasted longer than just tonight, what would he tell you when he had to leave? For months? What would he tell you when he had to travel, and what would you say in response? He didn't want to think about it, but he let his selfishness get the better of him.

You grasped his hand and gently led him towards your bedroom. You felt Dan's hand squeeze yours as you flipped on the light. You tried to move forward, but instead you felt his hand on your waist.

He pulled you gently towards himself, and closed the space within a second of you turning.

It was a soft kiss, something to tell you he was there, and no matter what, he would be.

Something telling you this was how you both truly felt.

Something you knew you would regret, and something he knew he would too. Something telling you you're moving too fast, something making it clear this is what you've wanted for years and yet-

It wasn't

This isn't what you want.

You just can't let him go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hiii I've had this chapter written for sooo long but I kept putting it off thinking if I liked it or not. I'm not so sure, maybe I'll go back and rewrite parts, but for now I dig it!
> 
> If you're down with this chapter please let me know! I don't want to do extra work if it's not necessary.
> 
> anyways, please follow me on tumblr (nationallydone.tumblr.com) for updates on this story and extra content! thanks for reading, and as always ILYYY!

**Author's Note:**

> I hope this first chapter is good! I don't know if I'll continue writing this, but if you want to see more, please let me know! <3
> 
> Thank you for reading the first chapter of Airplane Mode!
> 
> tumblr: nationallydone.tumblr.com


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